Grassroots fundraising: “Something we’ve been waiting for”

May 30, 2012

Up until a few weeks ago, Brendan, a supporter in Seattle, hadn’t yet donated to this campaign. But on May 9th, he got inspired—and raised $2,335 from his friends and family in just 24 hours by starting a grassroots fundraising page.

“When I saw that President Obama stated his support for same-sex marriage, I just wanted to a send a message showing that I supported him,” Brendan says. “So I donated that very day.

“Then after donating, I saw that there was this new grassroots fundraising tool, so I created a page, uploaded my photo and my story, and encouraged my friends and family to send their own message of support for the President’s same-sex marriage announcement. More importantly, I reminded them that this campaign is going to be built by lots of small donors, while the other side will rely on fewer but bigger donors.

“I have a partner who I’ve been with for 24 years. We had a marriage ceremony 13 years ago, so we’ve been waiting for this for a while. Back when I was in law school, I used to work a lot on gay marriage issues. So not only was it personally meaningful to me and my partner, it was a historic event.

“This message resonated with a lot of people—and within 24 hours we got $2,400.

“Making a contribution to the Obama campaign is something that has a national impact. Even if I can’t give my own time in a big way, I can at least contribute—and send a strong message.”